Heartbreaker
by DarkAngel942
Summary: What happens if Damon finally gets Elena, and Stefan turns evil? Damon will have to step up as an older brother, but can he manage to save Stefan?
1. Prologue

Damon had finally succeeded in winning the heart of his Queen of Darkness.

He and Elena lived in a house together in California after she chose him over Stefan. Elena had been distraught about him- and she had told the brothers her decision at Stefan's boarding house, so Stefan had had to bear the heartbreak of actually _watching _his girlfriend leave his house to be in love with his brother.

Damon, to begin with, hadn't cared about Stefan. He had won his Princess, and that was all that mattered for a while. But lately, Damon had begun to notice that he missed his little brother. Only a little though, but it was enough to make him ponder over sneaking back to Fell's Church to see if he was still there. And sometimes Damon wondered if his brother had killed himself. It wouldn't be unlike him to do something as drastic as that. But no- Damon thought. Stefan wouldn't have done that to his little human friends.

Elena had moped around the house when they had arrived for a few weeks. Damon could easily tell it was because of Stefan's absence: she was still in love with him. But Elena had chosen Damon, and so she only had herself to blame.

Sometimes, when Damon lay next to his Princess in bed, he wondered about what his brother would be doing- and if Stefan was eating enough. Even when Stefan had been human, when he was upset or angry he lost weight from his lack of eating. The vampire Stefan wasn't any different. Elena had packed her bag the day she left him- and the last time Damon had seen his brother was when he was loading it into the trunk of his black Ferrari. He had looked over at Stefan- who was standing in the doorway. There were tears running down his cheeks, and his eyes were full of hurt. Damon had never seen such pain in his brother's eyes before, and to be truthful to himself, he was wondering about what Stefan would do next. Would he try and follow them? Or try and kill Damon?

But he didn't try anything. He just stood- and watched as his girlfriend left him for his elder brother. Anybody else who had watched would have _wept _at the dramatic scene_._ Elena had continuous tears running down her face too, and her mouth was in a straight line as if she was trying her best not to burst into a sob. She hadn't looked back at Stefan- probably to afraid to see the hurt she had caused.

Overall- it was a _very_ dramatic night for Damon.

He had found a house in California which he knew Elena would grow to love when she stopped grieving about Stefan. It was a three-bedroom, very spacious house with a large back garden. It was quite a rural place that Damon had chosen- which suited Elena fine as she hadn't wanted to make friends in the new neighborhood.

She hadn't been particularly bothered about where they were going to live- as she was only thinking about Stefan. She had abandoned all her friends and family to be with Damon, and he had been glad. But when he looked into her mind- he saw so much love still there for Stefan that he reigned in his Powers sharply. He knew that she would continue to love him for a while, but Elena was feeling so disgusted with herself for hurting the people she loved that Damon didn't dwell on the thought.

That was all four months ago, and they were both settled into their new home together. Damon had never lived with a girl for an entire four months, so he had to get used to all the crappy gossip magazines lying around the whole place. Elena seemed happy, but when Damon took a quick peek into her mind- he noticed a lot of sadness in her thoughts. He knew she loved him, but he also knew that she was feeling guilty that she should be so happy while Stefan was probably miserable. In fact- there was no 'probably' about that.

Damon had once tried to track down his brother by using his Power to trace him- but there was nothing. Not even a glimmer of Stefan. This could mean either one of two things: Stefan had killed himself OR he was shielding himself- and Damon had no way of telling which one his brother was doing.

Elena loved living with Damon, but a lot of the time he caught her looking out in the street at the just-visible neighborhood which was a good distance away from their house- and he knew she was thinking about her friends. Damon only remembered two of their names: Scary Meredith, and Bonnie. He sometimes found himself wondering what would have happened if Elena hadn't picked him- would he have run off with Bonnie? She was a very pretty girl, with her long ginger hair and big brown eyes. But she was also no Elena.

Stefan had had such wonderful things planned for himself and Elena: they were going to get married, get a house, and live together while all the time being madly in love.

And Damon had realized that his life was what Stefan had dreamed of doing most with Elena- having their own home and being happy.

And Damon had shattered that dream into a million pieces.

**Please review and tell me what you think!! :-D**


	2. Noises in the Night

Damon had been walking home when he heard the noises.

Elena had asked him to go and get some painkillers for her as she had a terrible headache. As much as he didn't want to go down to the shops and behave like a human, he went purely for Elena's well-being. She had been ill with a cold for the past few days- the usual coughing, sneezing, headache and sore throat. So he kissed her forehead while she lay in bed and disappeared off to the pharmacy in town.

By this time, Damon had not heard from his brother in exactly four months and three weeks. He hadn't been counting- Elena had. Stefan's birthday had passed two days ago, and surprisingly Damon felt rather weird about the fact that his brother was going to spend his birthday alone. Damon had mostly always secretly watched Stefan when his birthday passed- mostly due to boredom. But even when he hadn't watched him or kept track of them- he knew his brother wasn't alone.

And somehow Damon got the feeling- family intuition, perhaps- that Stefan was very, very alone. But he didn't admit even to himself that he cared for Stefan, he was a stupid, annoying little brat- and he always had been. And when Stefan had found Elena, Damon did everything in his power to steal her away from him. That had worked. But when he looked deep inside himself- he found no reason why he should hate his brother now that he had Elena to himself. So Damon decided to just sneak back to Fell's Church and take a look.

And off he went- not telling Elena where he went that is.

Damon had made his way back to the tiny town, and flew straight into a nearby tree beside Stefan's boarding house- parking himself on a thick branch. Memory washed over him. The last time he was here- his brother was fighting for control of his emotions and Elena was leaving him for Damon.

Damon had set his sights on the boarding house, scanning it for signs of Stefan. But there were none. None at all.

He flew into Stefan's room's window. The room was dusty- obviously nobody had been living in there for a very long time. So Damon just went straight home to Elena.

Two days later, on his way to the pharmacy for Elena- he'd lost most of his interest in his brother. Damon had actually went back to check how he was doing- Stefan wasn't there. He'd probably moved. It didn't bother Damon as much as some people thought it might would.

He swiftly approached the all-night pharmacy and walked straight in. Less than five minutes later, and he was out again with a packet of painkillers for Elena.

He was on his way back when he heard the slurping noises of a feeding vampire. Immediately on guard, he whirled around on the spot- trying to identify exactly where the noises were coming from.

An alleyway was to Damon's far left, and he crossed the straight. As he did- the slurping sounds grew louder. Well, louder to _his_ ears anyway, he doubted the humans could hear anything. He reached the entrance to the alleyway- and froze.

For he knew that creature that was feeding on a woman's neck.

He knew the dark face that had its fangs deep in her neck.

For it was his brother, Stefan.

Damon was rigid with shock.

Stefan had had trouble killing a fucking _rabbit_, and he had babbled on non-stop about humans having lives and feelings too. And now he was here, feeding on a defenseless woman?

What gives?

And- sensing Damon- Stefan looked up from the bloody neck of the woman.

His eyes rested on Damon's. And Damon- for once in his long life- was completely shocked. Stefan had such _evil _in his eyes, and he looked nothing like the old Stefan that liked to have tiny bird's for breakfast. This Stefan was violent, evil, and hell-bent on causing as much pain to the human as possible.

Then Stefan hissed, dropped the woman, and- no, seriously, no kidding- _flew_ away.

Damon was left too stunned to move- unable to hear the bloody woman's moans of pain. His brother was _evil. _Damon walked towards the woman coldly, robotically, and knelt down on front of her. He placed his right hand on her head and made her open her eyes to look at him. Then, as her eyes were finally steady on his, he whispered:

"You will remember nothing of my brother. He was not here. You did not meet him. You were attacked by a man with a knife- who cut you. Repeat- I remember nothing."

The woman's eyes seemed to go glassy on hisshe repeated the words obediently back to him.

"Good." Damon stood up, and wiped his black jeans before setting off again.

During the walk home, Damon thought about Stefan. He was still in shock by how much hate his brother had inside him- and it had turned him evil. And for the first time _ever_ Damon realized that Stefan was as strong as he himself was- which meant that he could read and control minds very easily, along with being even more of a danger to humans...


	3. Worrying, are we Damon?

Damon started to run home. He couldn't morph into a crow because of the painkillers in his hand. Had Stefan hurt Elena? Surely he still loved her?

But then Damon remembered the look in Stefan's eyes- no creature capable of that was capable of _love_.

How on _earth _did this happen?!- Damon thought as he ran through the streets. Stefan was always a softie, and Damon himself had been the bad one- the one eating all the pretty women in town. And now the roles were reversed. Of course Damon wasn't soft, but he had changed a little since he and Elena had got together. He rarely killed anymore, and he left the women he fed off of in a stable condition. Stefan was always the one scolding him- telling him it was wrong to treat humans like that.

Stefan must have gone insane- Damon thought. He must have become unstable after Elena left him. He had loved her immensely, and Damon knew he would have grieved and been hurt- but he never suspected that Stefan would become _this._

For a second Damon wondered if he only had himself to blame. But then he remembered that his little brother didn't mean anything to him anymore- and that self-accusing thought disappeared from his mind.

Damon had never really cared for his brother- he had always been a nuisance to him. But he knew that this was unlike his brother- he wasn't being himself. He may not like his brother- but he did _know_ him.

Damon reached the house, and rushed inside and ran upstairs to Elena. Panic hit him if Stefan had hurt her or not. But when he rushed into the room, Elena was propped up on a pillow, reading a magazine with a box of tissues beside her. Obviously no harm had come to her, and now she was worried by Damon's panicked stance.

"Whats wrong?" she asked, worried.

"Uh- nothing. I was just worried about you."

He knew it was a rubbish excuse, but Elena seemed to buy it. She shook her head, a loving smile on her face.

"I told you Damon, its just a cold. I'll be fine in a few days." But then she sneezed- sort of ruining her 'I'm fine' speech.

"Well, I've never been around women who are ill before," he said, returning her smile with a slightly forced smirk.

He handed her the painkiller packet and she immediately took one to ease her painful headache. He decided it was best not to tell her about Stefan, as she would only get upset and try her best to make Damon find him. There was no doubt that she'd blame herself, and she'd sob for weeks and weeks. Perhaps eventually she'd want to return home, and that would make Damon return to square one again.

And besides all that, deep down he didn't want to believe that his brother was doing all those things. It was utter madness to think of Stefan killing, he had always been so scared of murdering humans.

Was his brother living near here? Or was he just passing through? But Damon knew that he had made matters worse by showing himself to Stefan that night- as now Stefan knew Elena and Damon were there, he would most likely stick around.

**Yep, very very short chapter. I tried to make it longer, but there isn't much that I could do as it isn't a very informative scene lol. Next chapter will be longer and better I pinky-promise :-D**


	4. Bye Bye Brother

The next afternoon, Damon and Elena went for a walk around the town. She needed to get some fresh air to help her get over her cold- but Damon had nearly had to drag her out of bed. She hadn't had much sleep the night before, and Damon had asked why- she didn't tell him. But whatever it was, it caused her to have even more nightmares and stay awake for most of the night.

Eventually Damon had had to look into her mind to find out what was bothering her sleep, and was shocked to see that she had been having dreams about Stefan. And they were horrid dreams of him killing.

Had Stefan influenced her dreams?- Damon had wondered- but he realized that if any sort of Power had been used, he would have woken up. He _always_ knew when Power was used.

So why was she having dreams? And when she found out that her worst nightmares had come true- what would she do? Cry? Run back to Stefan and beg him to be with her again? Damon wouldn't let that happen, but sometimes he wondered if Elena's heart truly did belong to him.

There was always going to be a Stefan-shaped hole in her life and her heart, and Damon had no way of filling that hole. The only thing he could do was try his best to show her that losing his brother wasn't the worst thing in the world.

As for Damon himself- all night he had wondered what to do about Stefan. Part of him was glad that Stefan had finally grown a bit of backbone and fulfilled his nature as a vampire- but the other part of him was strangely worried. This wasn't his brother. His brother would never have dreamed of hurting anybody, and somehow Damon- over the years- had started to accept that his brother was never going to be like him.

He thought it was best that Elena got out of the house. And although he was wary about Stefan's motivations for that day- Damon would never leave Elena's side. She would always be protected. That thought stuck in Damon's mind. He- not in a million years- had ever thought that he'd have to protect the one he loved from his weak brother. But Stefan wasn't weak anymore- and Elena needed protecting more than ever.

Elena was wrapped up warmly- and she was still shivering, which was strange, but then again: he remembered humans _do_ get shivery when they are ill. Damon himself was in a black shirt, black leather jacket and- well, you get the point: he was all in black.

They walked hand-in-hand along the streets of California, and Damon could see that Elena's previously white cheeks were getting some colour back in them- which he supposed was good. But he had no idea- he had never cared for humans health before and couldn't really remember his time as a human all that well.

"Damon?"

"Yes, my love?"

"Have you- er- have you heard from- from Stefan?" Elena stuttered out- looking up at him, afraid he was going to get angry.

But Damon just sighed. He had expected this some day.

"No, I have not."

Elena looked sad and disappointed.

"How do you think he is?"

Damon looked at her. It was painful to know that she still loved his brother, but it was a small price to pay to keep her.

"I don't know."

"But- I thought maybe- because you're his family- that maybe you might know something?"

Damon sighed again.

"Elena, I'm sorry, I have no idea. Stefan has probably left Fell's Church and gone to bore somebody else's life," he replied, keeping his eyes on the path ahead.

Elena just stared straight ahead silently. Neither of them spoke for a full ten minutes, when suddenly she piped up:

"I hate knowing that I hurt him. I hate having the image of him crying in my head."

Damon let a pause go by before replying.

"I know."

They continued to walk, but then half an hour later, Elena started complaining of a headache- and they made their way back to the house. By then it had grown dark and the night looked mysterious- as if it was waiting for something bad to happen.

Which, of course, it did.

The metallic bang came from over their heads- and they both looked up. But then a loud thump came from in front of them- and they looked forward.

Stefan.

He looked almost normal with his hair ruffled- as usual- and his clean clothes.

Damon heard Elena gasp- then burst into tears.

"Stefan? Stefan, how did you find us?" she stared at him through watery eyes.

Stefan hissed at her, baring his fangs.

Elena jumped back- then started crying even more. Damon just kept his eyes on his brother.

"Stefan, what are you doing? You would never hurt anyone, remember?" Elena's voice sounded even more desperate.

Then slowly, Stefan smiled. But it wasn't the old Stefan smile- this was an evil I-Love-Killing smile: one that Damon had used all the time.

"Oh, wouldn't I?" Stefan drawled.

Damon was shocked. Stefan's voice sounded so musical- even to Damon's ears, and he had heard a _lot_ of powerful vampires talk.

And that's when Damon realized.

His brother was gone. And this evil one had replaced him...


	5. Breaking a Heart

**Elena's POV**

She stared at him.

This was not my Stefan- she thought. This wasn't my lovely, sweet, gorgeous Stefan who I fell in love with the moment my eyes were set on his.

He was evil.

He had this awful, gleaming evil in his eyes that reminded her of Damon. He was dressed completely in black- and the only thing that separated him from Damon was his wavy hair.

I've done this to him- Elena cried silently to herself. I made him like this. It's all my fault.

"Stefan, please- I'm sorry. Please don't be like this," she sobbed. He was turning into Damon. She loved Damon, but this was_ Stefan._

"Be like what?" Stefan smirked at her. That broke her heart even more. He was so _cold_ with her. She sobbed, and she felt Damon's arms around her- and she looked up to see how he was taking all this. He was staring at his brother with a mixture of wonder, confusion...and was that concern she saw in his eyes?

Stefan looked around him.

"There's some hot girls in this town. I'm hungry. See ya," Stefan said coldly before turning on his heel and walking away.

Elena burst into more fresh tears as soon as he walked away.

**Yeah, very short, but this chapter is only for Elena as I thought she should have her 'say' lol**


	6. Nature or Soul?

Elena sobbed the whole way home while Damon just walked, brooding silently. There wasn't anything to say that would comfort her, so he just put an arm around her- mostly for his benefit than hers. He needed to touch her so that she knew she was protected- and he wanted her to feel as safe as possible with him.

Elena eventually stopped crying when they made it back to the house, but she stared blankly off into space when Damon sat her down in the living room- tears streaking her face. He had no idea what to do- comforting women was not his thing, it was Stefan's. _Stefan_. Damon turned his head sharply away from Elena as he thought of his brother. To be truthful to himself- he was worried. Stefan had always scolded Damon over even the little things like meaningless women and furry little dead animals- and now Stefan was probably shagging around twenty women per night and never mind furry dead things: he would be feeding on the women.

While Damon tried to grasp the latest information that Stefan was a womanizer in his mind, he went into the kitchen and poured Elena a mug of tea for her shock. When he placed it on front of her- she just started shaking her head a little, more tears escaping her eyes. Then she seemed to compose herself a little as she asked:

"Did you know?" Her voice was cracking by the end of her question.

Damon looked at her steadily while composing his answer.

"I didn't want to worry you. I saw him feeding on a woman last night."

Elena closed her eyes and took a deep breath in.

"So that's why you were so late home," she croaked. Damon could tell by her voice that she was going to start crying again soon.

"I thought it best you didn't know. I hoped it was a one-off and he lost control, but obviously not," Damon said, staring into the distance.

"You should have told me!" she snapped, opening her eyes and settling them on him. Damon's dead heart jolted as he saw the pain held in Elena's eyes.

"Damon, you have to talk to him!" she pleaded.

Damon contemplated for a minute. His brother had always just been a worthless flower to him- no better than the humans. But had he really wished that Stefan would be like him one day? Of course, he had wanted Stefan to face up to what he was, to what his nature intended him to be, but he hadn't actually suspected Stefan would actually _do_ it. Did he really want to stop his brother from what he was currently doing? But Damon really had no right: he had been getting on at Stefan for half a millennium, and after all- who was he to judge? He had always been like this- killing for pleasure and power.

"Damon, please?!" Elena begged, looking at him through her gorgeous blue eyes- pleading with him.

"I'll see what I can do, Elena. But I've nagged at him since we were Changed into vampires about his way of life. And now he's what his nature had wanted him to be. I'm not sure I can convince him."

Elena's eyes poured fresh tears, but she carried on speaking.

"This isn't him, Damon. You know that. He's not the brother you grew up with. Do you seriously want to keep him this way when it's not truly him?" Elena sounded shocked and pained to have to talk about Stefan that way.

Damon thought for a moment. Did he want his brother back the way he was? But then he realized- his brother needed help. And Damon couldn't seem to contemplate the idea of keeping his brother this way. Elena was right- he wasn't Stefan anymore.

And he needed his big brother more than ever.

**Next chapter will be up in by the most two days :-D I have a long weekend and I have so much stuff to write for this story.**

**Thanks for the reviews guys! And Leah & Ash, what do you mean by a book? :-D I seem to not be able to send you mail so I have to ask you on this lol**


	7. Author Note :D

Sorry for the lack of updates people! Exams are going on and I'm petrified of failing so I haven't been able to write due to revising! I'll update when I can, I pinky promise :-D


	8. Clubbing's Not For Everyone

The next day, he started to make plans in his head- plotting in his mind-map of the places that Stefan might be. When he himself like to hunt, he usually went to clubs and met girls- and he had to presume that Stefan did the same. So he kissed Elena's forehead at nine that night, telling her that he was going to go look for Stefan. Her reaction was a mixture of relief and sadness. She was still so upset that she had caused this, and she couldn't stop blaming herself.

Damon had looked into her mind the previous night, and he hadn't been very surprised by what he had seen- which he somehow, amusingly, found surprising. In her mind, she was remembering the smell of Stefan, she was remembering his smile. She didn't stop thinking about the feel of his soft skin and hair, but his scent stayed in her mind more than anything else. It was sweet, and had his cologne mixed in.

Damon had tracked down Stefan many times, so he was not oblivious to his brother's scent- but the way Elena's mind pictured it was shocking. It was adoring...as if she couldn't live without it.

So he left that night, and went to one of the clubs that was closest to his home. Stefan would presumably find a girl, then take her outside and feed off of her.

That night, Damon walked the streets instead of flying as a bird. He hated not being a crow- it would be quicker to get there- but when he was Morphed he gave out more Power than if he was in his ordinary form. And if he gave out more Power, Stefan would be more likely to track him, which Damon_ did not_ want.

But he asked himself why Stefan was doing this to himself. Elena was right, it wasn't him. The break up may have forced his little brother to go insane, or maybe it just sparked his nature to force itself out. He had no idea. But, he wanted his _old_ brother back. He wanted the milk sop brother who annoyed him so much that he made Damon want to kill something- because _that_ was the brother that he knew, and who his brother truly was: the brother he had grown up hating.

And now Stefan needed help. Big time.

And so, wandering around the streets was the only thing that he could do. Stefan would be here somewhere...hopefully.

A few girls giggled and past Damon, and he smiled at them- which only made them giggle more- but he wasn't interested in girls like that anymore. He had his Elena. And he needed to concentrate on Stefan right now, otherwise he might accidently miss him walking by.

One club seemed to stand out more than the others, and Damon could sense Power around it- so he swiftly entered. Stefan's scent was here, he noticed immediately. Thank god, Damon thought- prowling clubs wasn't his thing, not really. He only did it to find blood, not find anyone _else_.

He walked down the steps of the club, bypassing girls and boys, his eyes searching for his brother.

In truth, he did feel slightly concerned for Stefan- it wasn't like him to do something like this. Elena couldn't sleep at night in her worry, and to be truthful, Damon sometimes found himself wondering what on earth was going on in Stefan's mind. He was obviously extremely upset, but to do something like this? It wasn't him.

His dark eyes searched the bar, and a dark head alerted him. He recognized the wavy hair, strong build, and overall handsomeness of the boy- so it was obviously Stefan. And from the looks of it, he was chatting up a giggling girl.

Who just happened to be drunk. Hmm, what a surprise- Damon thought.

He quietly made his way over to his brother, and as he did, the strength of Stefan's aura struck him. He wasn't exactly stronger than Damon, but he wasn't the weakling that he had once been. That was another reason that Damon wanted the real Stefan back- his brother was born to be annoying, boring, and _weaker_ than Damon, and he wanted him back.

"Hello, little brother," Damon said silkily.

Stefan's head turned. He didn't look much different in his posture, but his features were totally different. He was meaner, and much more spiteful than Damon had ever seen him.

"What do you want?" Stefan growled coolly.

Hmm- Damon thought. He found himself slightly stung for some reason, Stefan had never spoken with such venom.

"I wish to speak with you."

"And why would you want to do that?" Stefan smirked. He looks like _me_- Damon noticed.

"Because I do. It will only take a second," Damon replied.

Stefan watched Damon for a long, spite-filled second- and Damon found himself wondering if he'd ever get his little brother back- but then Stefan said a cold 'wait here' to the girl he had been speaking to, then glared at Damon before walking away.

Damon followed, watching Stefan carefully as he walked.

When they were out of earshot- not like anyone was listening anyway- they stopped walking and faced each other. They had made their way to a dark alley-type hall where the bathrooms were located, but there was nobody around at all.

"Why are you being like this, Stefan?" Damon decided to get straight onto the topic and skip the starters.

Stefan stared coolly at his elder brother, then a small smile appeared on his face.

"Being like what?"

"You _know_ what," Damon growled.

"I have no idea what you mean."

"Like _this_! The women, the killing- _why_?! When you fought so much with me over _my_ lifestyle?!"

"I don't get you, Damon. You say I should become more like my nature, and now I am. And you don't like it?" Stefan tutted, but the coldness in his voice told Damon that Stefan wasn't in the mood to be messed with tonight.

"Of course I don't like it. Face up to your nature, but you didn't have to become like this and hurt Elena so badly, little brother," Damon snapped._ Never_ had he thought that he would have had to have this conversation with Stefan.

"But why do you care, Damon? I thought I was just the annoying little brother to you. _Stay out of my way if you can't handle it_," Stefan snarled, then made a point of bashing Damon's shoulder on his way back to the club area.

They had been too busy arguing to notice that Elena had come to the club, seen everything, and had her eyes now locked with Stefan's.

Oh, _no_- Damon thought.


	9. Heartbreak

**Elena's POV**

She stared at the man that she still loved so dearly.

When she had left Stefan, hurting him was the only thing that she couldn't bear. Being away from friends and family was capable, but hurting Stefan was something that had caused Elena to look away with disgust at herself. His sad eyes and tear-stained face when she had put her suitcase in Damon's car would be etched in her memory forever. Her heart had been breaking in two- and part of her had wanted to run to him and beg for him to take her back. But Elena hadn't done that, because she had realized her love for Damon. He had confessed his undying love to her in the most romantic of ways, and she had left _Stefan_ for him.

_Stefan. _

When Damon was asleep, she cried her heart out for her lost love. Leaving Stefan was the hardest thing she'd ever done, and considering all that they had been through together- the Shi No Shi, Katherine, and Klaus, that was saying something. She missed Stefan's comforting arms around her body, being safe with him. Although Elena adored Damon, she wanted Stefan back with her- and when she thought of how much she wanted him back, she felt unbelievably selfish and cruel. If Stefan was happy, then maybe things would be different- she always told herself.

But Stefan wasn't happy. Not at all.

How could she do something like this to him? In all her life, she'd never imagined feeling so selfish and unbearably pained by his absence and hurt. Leaving him had left a hole in her heart- one that even Damon couldn't fill. No-one could, only Stefan.

And he was in _pain_.

"I followed you here," Elena breathed out to answer Damon's confused and annoyed expression, her voice breaking as she looked deep into Stefan's eyes. There was nothing familiar about him there- nothing to remind her of the person her once was with his sad, beautiful smile. Her life had been _him. _

His eyes were narrowed slightly as she tried to find something that resembled the Stefan she had so reluctantly left behind, as if her mere presence annoyed him- and that thought hurt more than anything else in the world, causing her eyes to spill out a few tears.

"Stefan, please, I never meant to hurt you. You know I didn't. This isn't you, Stefan, it isn't! This- this person you've become!" she spluttered, tears now freely pouring down her face.

There was no reaction from him, as she somehow hoped her tears would achieve- like they had always used to. His beautiful forest green eyes still gleamed under the disco lights of the club, the pupils slightly dilated in something that resembled _hatred._

Damon watched his fiance try to communicate with his brother, but there was no change in Stefan's appearance. Usually, he had been able to read Stefan's thoughts easily, but now that he was stronger due to the human blood he'd been consuming, Stefan could block his mind from intruders.

"Goodbye, Elena," Stefan said coolly, stepping away from Damon and beginning to walk up the stairs again.

"No, Stefan, wait!" she cried, trying to grab his arm, but Damon quickly put his arms around her and dragged her away. Stefan might do anything- which shocked Damon. He'd never had to be wary in front of his little brother before. This whole thing was so different to him, and he wasn't sure that he liked it yet.

His black coal eyes watched as Stefan barely glanced at Elena coolly before swiftly walking up the steps to the exit.

With Elena struggling in his arms to go after him, sobbing her heart out, Damon felt frozen. His little brother- cold and detached, not the way he was born to be. Do I want this?- he thought to himself as Elena stopped struggling and sagged against him, her tears on his jacket. Did I want this to happen? I was always calling him a sissy, but I never thought that he'd actually... prove me wrong.

Do I want to keep this brother, when I _know _he's not truly being his true self, when he's so unhappy?

**Yes, I know, VERY short chapter, but I promise that the next one will be longer! I hit a writer's block, as I seem to on all my stories sometimes, and they're always really sticky to get out of. Hopefully, as an apology, I'll have the next chapter up for next week sometime- I have exam leave! =-)**


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